PNA Parade
11/26/2019
It all started with this incredible book in which the history of the Macy's Thanksgiving Parade is beautifully illustrated through text and pictures. It ended with an all school viewing of the balloon parade on Friday afternoon right before break. What happened in between was where the magic happened. This project had all the components of what learning looks like at PNA. A Guiding Question How can we, as student engineers, design and create a balloon float for our school parade? Collaboration & Communication The second graders worked alongside their fifth grade buddies to each create a balloon float for the parade. These students helped each other, encouraged each other and offered help and feedback regardless of age - 2nd graders were helping 5th graders and 5th graders were helping 2nd graders. Alignment to Standards The engineering focus from Next Generation Science Standards were the backbone of this challenge. K-2-ETS1-1.Ask questions, make observations, and gather information about a situation people want to change to define a simple problem that can be solved through the development of a new or improved object or tool. K-2-ETS1-2.Develop a simple sketch, drawing, or physical model to illustrate how the shape of an object helps it function as needed to solve a given problem. K-2-ETS1-3.Analyze data from tests of two objects designed to solve the same problem to compare the strengths and weaknesses of how each performs. Creativity & Critical Thinking
There was no shortage of creativity flowing during this process. Students had amazingly creative ideas for their balloons and even more amazingly creative ways to pull off their ideas. Critical thinking was at a high as students persevered through design challenges that arose and reworked original designs until they succeeded in their attempts. Communication is Key
11/17/2019
The instructions were simple...or so it seemed. Students were supposed to sort their animal cards into groups. Each partnership set off to work... ...and quickly realized that this activity wasn't as easy as it first appeared. Some animals fit into several categories and some didn't seem to have a category at all. Some of the words were really hard to read and some seemed to have conflicting information. Some partners had a hard time deciding who would get to be in control of the cards and some wanted to take charge and not listen to the ideas of their partners.
One might wonder what students are gaining out of such an activity, especially having to accomplish it in a collaborative partnership when it could have easily been done individually. Cornell University has identified several benefits of collaborative learning as seen in this article. They maintain that this type of learning leads to the "development of higher-level thinking, oral communication, self-management, and leadership skills", among others. Communication was key here in this activity as students needed to communicate with each other in order to even start the activity. They needed to hear and understand the communication given to them by the teacher as the purpose of the activity. They needed to self-manage themselves and their individual roles (who got to hold the cards, split the cards, sort the cards, etc.). While it was evident in a couple of the partnerships who took the leader role, the other two partnerships worked in authentic collaboration discussing each card and hearing the reasonings of their partner before sorting into a group. Critical thinking skills were strengthened as students helped each other to read the information on the cards, find commonalities between animals and create groups accordingly. Higher level thinking came into play when students were given additional challenge cards where they had to utilize their newfound knowledge (and that of their partner) to place the challenge animals into their proper groups. Not only did students learn how real scientists observe, debate and ultimately categorize animals, they also had authentic opportunity to strengthen their communication skills. "Parent Lunches"
11/9/2019
A long standing tradition at PNA is that of "Parent Lunches". These gatherings of students and family happen in every grade at PNA four times a year. Over the years, they have evolved from just lunches and have branched out into breakfasts and afternoon snacks. The premise behind these gatherings remains the same however, which is having a special someone (parent, grandparent, friend, sibling) breaking bread and sharing in a classroom activity.
The benefits of "Parent Lunches" are far reaching and important. They are an excellent way for families to see what a typical activity and way of learning in the PNA classroom looks like. They offer the opportunity for families to connect with other families in the classroom, which can otherwise be challenging in these hectic lives we lead. Kids are excited to become the teachers as they explain and demonstrate things they are working on and learning about in the classroom. And of course, there is always yummy food to share and enjoy! Our first gathering was an afternoon snack that found the second grader's families listening and learning about Author's Purpose. There were some passages to read together and then decisions to make about the author's purpose of the passage. Was that passage intended to Persuade, Inform or Entertain the reader? Students (and family members) needed to use good reading skills and critical thinking to discern the difference. Then they were given immediate feedback in the form of QR codes to see if they had correctly identified the author's purpose. Thank you families for spending part of your day to come and learn with us! |
Marcella HitchcockMs. Hitchcock teaches second grade, is a mom of two, an avid reader, lifelong learner, and a seeker of sunshine! Archives
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